Can Linux beat XP in homes yet or NOT?

[Gordon Keehn]

Gene Heskett wrote:
> On Friday 13 July 2007, Gordon Keehn wrote:
> [...]
>   
>>    It comes down to utility.  I'm sort of a semi-geek;  I've been
>> running Linux on my n-1 box since RH 6.  I will never be free of
>> Windows, though, because I have two critical apps which I cannot run
>> under wine, and for which suitable replacements (according to MY
>> requirements) do not exist.
>>     
>
> And I would opine that those requirements are false, crutches if you will, 
> that justify in your mind, the reason to stick with winderz.  File formats 
> seem to be the biggest thing, and the last time I had trouble opening 
> somebody's 'word' document was back in RH7.3 days.  OpenOffice Just 
> Works(TM).
>
>   
    You would opine incorrectly.  As it happens I use OpenOffice on both 
Linux (F7) and WinXP.  The applications I refer to have functions which 
are not (after considerable searching) available in other products, or 
which are documented as being available, but in practice require an 
investment of skill and time which are unsuitable given an alternative 
that "just works". 
    Certainly there are limited alternatives, but adapting to one of 
them would require that I give up functionality.  That may be acceptable 
in the isolated context of punishing Microsoft for its insufferable 
arrogance, but for the average user who sees a computer as a tool to 
allow certain tasks to be performed more easily than they could be 
otherwise, it doesn't make it out of the gate.  Thus, my answer to the 
original question, "Can Linux beat XP in homes yet or NOT?" must be a 
resounding NOT YET, AND PROBABLY NEVER!

Cheers,
Gordon Keehn